yumping france had the opportunity to meet Juan Tuñon, a Spanish mountain biker who made the Pan American by bicycle. He left Ushuaia, the southernmost city of Argentina in South America, to go back to Prudhoe Bay in Alsaka.

The Panamerician

On paper, it was more than 27,500 km that he traveled in 20 months. In practice, it is an infinity of experiences and anecdotes which, after having moved it, also touched us. In his village, we nickname him " the happiest cyclist in the world ". Here is his story:
Juan Tuñon and his bicycle


YUMPING FRANCE - What do you look at the experience you have lived by browsing the Pan -American Route? Juan Tuñon - There is so much to say about this trip ... What I remember above all is that there has been a lot of help from people, a lot of 'Affection, and it was very easy to travel through different cultures. It's a very nice trip.
y.f. - How did you start to make bicycle routes? J.T. - I started by doing the pilgrimage of Saint-Jacques de Compostela, from Roncesvalles. Then from Sevilla to Finistère, then from Amsterdam to Finistère.

y.f. - And, to return to the Pan American, you say that it seemed easy to you?
J.T. - Yes. In broad outline yes. If I want to remember the difficult times, I can manage to find it. For example, at the beginning, in Patagonia, I suffered. The winds were really very strong and took me head on! This is why in general people do this route from north to south. I did it from south to north. I remember having really suffered for days, without being able to erase the sound of the wind in my ears, even with music. These days it was hard!

y.f. - Was you alone?
J.T. - part of the trip, I was with a Swedish, and another part alone. But you are never completely alone. You always meet people. Me, I have a big bike so it does not go unnoticed ... People ask you where you come from, if you need something. I didn't feel alone! If you feel alone, you can always find someone.
Juan Tuñon on the Pan American


y.f. - Did you sleep with the locals? J.T. - Of course! The experience you earn completely changes you. Letting oneself help is an art. When you get up in the morning and the people who hosted you tend you a big smile when they let you plant your tent with them, you want to remind them that they are the ones who made you a favor.

y.f. - Have you been afraid sometimes? J.T. - no.
y.f. - You were struck by the earthquake in Chile, in the middle of the night. Even at that time, you were not afraid?
J.T. - no, because I woke up. It was February 27. I was in a small fishing village, in a campsite next to the beach, under a tree. The earth began to tremble around 3 a.m. The first second, I thought it was part of my dream. The second second, I saw the tree tremble, I wondered who was shaking it. The second third, I said to myself "put your pants and short". I took the little bag that contained the computer and left everything behind: clothes, the tent, the bicycle ... everything!

In Chile, they have a protocol, they go up in the mountains so as not to be struck by the wave if the tremor comes from the sea. At night, we have not seen the wave, but we heard it, we heard The cries of people ... the next day when I went back down to find my bike, in vain. And we saw the disaster ... cars on the roofs, thousands of dead fish ...
I was led to Santiago de Chile, I redid a passport, a mountain bike company gave me a bicycle after having had my story, totally for free ... The Chileans worked wonderfully.

y.f. - And after what happened in Chile, you did not think of abandoning?
J.T. - no. I told myself that I had to finish the trip. Even if I did not know how, I said to myself, I started it, I finished it.

y.f. - How do you finance the trip? Do you have sponsors? J.T. - no, I used my personal savings. I had calculated spending around € 10 per day. It's not easy to find Sponsors. I had put myself in contact with major brands of tents, cameras ... I send my information and I make requests by email, but they certainly put emails with the basket. I stopped looking for sponsors.

y.f. - And so now, are you planning the Silk Road, is it in three weeks?
J.T. - Yes, there are two possible roads. I think I go through Iran, Pakistan, India, Burma and China. Depending on the time of validity of visas, seasons, you must calculate your route ... I calculate to do this in a year. From Aviles (in Spain) to Shanghai, there are approximately 18,000 km, but as I think I will go through the south, it will be a little more.

The Bike of Juan Tuñon

y.f. - Will you go through France? J.T. - Yes, along the Côte d'Azur! And the Greek coast… I love the sea!

y.f. - Like what bicycle makes it addicted! But what you did is still huge!
J.T. - You have to have a little courage, but much less than what people imagine. Even if it rains, I know that every evening, I will sleep dry in my tent, and that the sun will end up getting up. In addition you do something that achieves you! You pedal from 4 to 9 hours a day, but if you like it, it's not an effort, it's a pleasure. I do not consider myself an athlete.
y.f. - Thank you Juan! And good road!
An exceptional adventure, made by an exceptional man, who will continue his journey around the world towards a discovery of others and himself.
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